What is the terrain like for the Marabana Havana Marathon?
With a series of flat avenues, waterfronts and rolling hills throughout Cuba’s awe-inspiring capital, the Havana 10K, Half and Full Marathon provides an encompassing tour of the city’s five municipalities. The full marathon is a two-loop course of the half marathon course. The race starts at the National Capitol in the heart of Old Havana, a UNESCO World Heritage site, continues along the flat, charming Malecón along the waterfront, rolls through hills into Central Havana by Sports City and Revolution Square, to finish where it began in Old Havana.
When training for a hilly course, Coach and past ambassador for insightCuba, Jenny Hadfield recommends that runners follow a hill strategy to be able to maintain their pace. Watch How to Run Hills with Coach Jenny Hadfield.
- Think of hills as a vertical challenge rather than part of your normal run. They require a different strategy.
- Forget pace. Always run hills by effort, not speed. Maintaining an even level of effort l going up a hill conserves energy, while making the most of gravity when going downhill.
- Your technique is as important as your strategy. When going uphill, shorten your stride, keep your torso tall, focus your gaze on the top of the hill, drive your elbows back and focus on pushing off from your toes. When running downhill, open your stride and let gravity pull you to the bottom.
- If you live in a flat area, run on bridges, use a treadmill with a varied incline or look for trails (off-road options often include more rollers).
